Sighting apparatus for use with ordnance



33-244. OR 1 ,aemoqo 5R aitsman A. T.-DAWSON AND J. HORNE.

SIGHTING APPARATUS FOR USE WITH ORDNANCE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. I0, 1919.

1,3 4,040, v Patented Dec. 28,1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

A. T. DAWSON AND 1. HORNE.

SlGHTING APPARATUS FOR USE WITH ORDNANCE. APPLHZATION FILED N0v.10. I919- Patented Dec. 28, 1920.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

Ura frsmai UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ARTHUR TREVOR DAIVSON, OF WESTMINSTER, AND JAMES HORNE, OF BARROW-IN- FURNESS, ENGLAND, ASSIGNORS T0 VICKERS LIMITED, OF \VESTMINSTEB, LON- DON, ENGLAND.

SIGHTING APPARATUS FOR USE WITH ORDNANCE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 28, 1920.

Application filed November 10, 1919. Serial No. 337,043.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, Sir ARTHUR TREVOR DAWSON and JAMns HORNE, both subjects of the King of Great Britain, residing, respectively, at Vickers House, Broadway, Vestminster, in the county of London, England, and Naval Construction works, Barrow-in-Furness, in the county of Lancaster, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in or Relating to Sighting Apparatus for Use with Ordnance, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to sighting apparatus for use with ordnance, of the kind comprising a telescope, sight bar or other sighting element which is mounted independently of the gun or guns and is capable of rotation in azimuth, this sighting element being employed for transmitting training angles or elevation angles or both to the gun or guns.

According to the present invention we provide a hood or canopy which protects the sighting element and is rotatably mounted independently of the latter and we provide means of a non-rigid character for angularly displacing said hood or canopy in unison with the angular movement of the said element in azimuth, these means bein so constructed and arranged as to avoid the production of any side drag upon the sighting element and also to avoid undesirable strains on the sighting element in the event of the axes of movements of the sighting element and the hood or canopy being out of alinement or eccentric.

In order that the said element may be clearly understood and readily carried into eifect, we will describe the same more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation showing more or less diagrammatically a constructional form of the invention, and

Fig. 2 is a part plan of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1 showing a modified constructional form of the invention, and

Fig. 4 is a plan of the left hand portion of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is an end elevation showing the base of the supporting bracket for the sighting element.

A is a platform or rotating table carrying the sighting element 'K. B is the hood or canopy for protecting the sighting element K and C is part of the fixed structure having a roller track C on which rollers B carried by the canopy run.

In the example shown by Figs. 1 and 2 the means for imparting movement to the canopy comprise two radial arms A A pivoted at a, a to the platform A. The innor ends of these radial arms are connected together by a pin and slot contrivance as shown in such a manner that a slight angular movement of the arms out of their radial position is permitted and the outer ends of these arms are formed with slots at engaging with vertical pins 6 or similar attachments depending from the canopy B. It will thus be seen that no cross-binding will take place should the center about which the platform A is rotated be eccentric with the circular path of the canopy and also that the pull on the end of each arm A is balanced and equal.

The constructional form of the means shown by Figs. 3 and 4 for imparting rotary movement to the canopy comprises a rack C attached to the fixed structure C and a pinion A engaging with this rack. The said pinion is mounted on a radially disposed shaft a connected by suitable gearing with the hand wheel A or similar device carried by the platform A for rotating the latter through suitable gearing which is not shown. The outer end of the said shaft is supported by a bearing formed in a bracket 13 depending from the canopy B so that rotation of the shaft and pinion causes the canopy to rotate in unison with the sighting element. The said shaft is provided with a flexible coupling arrangement such as a Hookes joint and also, if desired. with a telescopic or sliding coupling device; the latter may however be dispensed with by providing a certain amount of axial freedom of movement between the shaft a and the bracket B and thus allowing the pinion A to slide endwise on the teeth of the rack C in the event of the platform A and the roller path C becoming eccentric. Thus lack of concentricity between the sighting element and the protecting canopy will not give rise to strains on the gear. It will be observed that the arrangement shown by Figs. 3 and 4 does not produce any side drag on the platform A since the bearing for the shaft a is carried by the canopy. It will thus be clear that two such shafts and pinions arranged opposite to one another would have no further beneficial effect in so far as side drag on the platform A is concerned; in cases where it may be desired to balance the pull at both sides of the rotating canopy two such shafts could however be employed.

What we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. In sighting apparatus for use with ordnance, of the kind comprising a sighting element which is mounted independently of the gun or guns and is capable of rotation in azimuth, this sighting element being employed for transmitting training angles or elevation angles or both to the gun or guns, the combination with a support for the sighting element, of a hood or canopy fonprotecting said sighting el Gamma mounted independently of the latter and its support, and means of a non-rigid character for causing said hood or canopy to be displaced in unison with the angular movement of the support for the sighting element in azimuth.

2. In sighting apparatus for use with ordnance, of the kind comprising a sighting element which is mounted independently of the gun or guns and is capable of rotation in azimuth, this sighting element being employed for transmitting training angles or elevation angles or both to the gun or guns, the combination with a rotating table supporting the sighting element, of a hood or canopy for protecting said sighting element and mounted independently of the latter, two radial arms pivoted to said table, means for freely connecting said arms together and means for freely connecting said arms to the hood or canopy.

In testimony whereof we aflix our signatures.

ARTHUR TREVOR DAWSON. JAMES HORNE. 

